Oh boy, every parent has to survive the terrible twos or threes as it was for me and my baby girl.

My daughter was a perfect baby. Never needed me to correct her much at all.If she saw something she liked I would help her hold it and I would explain that it was mommy's toy and not to play with it unless mommy was with her. I was amazed at how this worked.

It wasn't until she was three and beginning to be very verbal that we had our issues. Her three older siblings taught her some creative words. She would ball up her fist and glare at you and say "Wanna piece of me." Which, yes, when she first did it we all laughed hysterically and that didn't help the matter.

They taught her some funny stuff but they also taught her some very inappropriate things. We were all sitting around watching T.V. and Angela wanted something. I told her ok mommy will get it in a second. The next think I knew here stood a little three year old with her hand on her hip and a mean face.

She glared at me and said something that I don't care to repeat. It hurt my feelings. I scolded her and told her that she needed to apologize right this moment.

Well, that went over past her attitude and she refused. So this was the make me or break me moment between her and mom. I put her nose on the wall. I told her to think about what she had said and when she felt she could apologize to me, then she could remove her nose from the wall.

I know the rules about time outs and the age of children. Well, this incident went way past three minutes. I could not believe that here she stood and was refusing to say "sorry."

It took her almost 15 minutes before she began to cry and she still would stomp her foot and glare at me. I kept thinking I should give in but had I done that, she would be a little "brat" today.

Someone's will had to be broken and I recalled what I had read in Dr. Dobsons book, "The Strong Willed Child." So I knew that I was not giving in.

A few minutes later she walked over to me with tears rolling down her face and she said "Sorry," at which point I took her into my arms and cried with her and told her she had hurt my feelings. We talked a little and I kissed her and sent her on her way to play.

She is now seven. I can honestly say that one experience taught her and me both a lesson. She has been the most thoughtful and pleasant child. We have gotten great compliments on her behavior and her politeness. But I honestly feel if I had given in that day and not made her think about what she had said. and kept her little nose on the wall, she could have turned out to be a little stinker.

Kids need love but they also need compassion and discipline. Good discipline has never harmed a child. Punishment has. There is such a world of difference between the two.

When you are planning a family be it by childbirth or by child adoption. You have plenty of time to read. The resources are out there. You might have to read a few because, I will tell you, you will not agree with a lot of the books and their authors. You have to sift through what is said and apply the good things to your home and family.

I strongly think that you should try anything and everything before discipline becomes spanking. Discipline should be age appropriate and it should line up and be able to be achieved by even an emotionally challenged child. So in many ways discipline has to be tailor-made for each little one.

I am truly blessed because even with the older siblings influencing my little girl, she picked up her own good instincts.

Of course learning and teaching her A, B, Cs were so easy because she had the whole family helping out. The kids were great at playing games with her and teaching her numbers. I honestly think that she will be my college graduate. That's the dream.

http://www.lisaperi.com/ This is one place to find some good advice for parenting children 12 to adolescence.

I found that a book called, "Positive Discipline," by Paul Simms and Eric Harvy, had some good pointers on not only discipline but how to get positive responses from the discipline you choose.

If there is a good book or video or web site that you have found helping in disciplining your children, feel free to share it with us. Information helps us have creative ways to respond when situations happen. And you know they will.